Lost & Found
by Crimson Elemental Alchemist
Summary: When a girl is found in the woods half dead, the Sohma's take her in. With all her memories gone and no name to give, will this mysterious girl be able to heal the broken Sohma family and Tohru? Rated for some serious injuries and smart-mouthing.
1. Lost

-1_Disclaimer: I do not own _Fruits Basket_ in any way._

_Crimson: My brain has run off again so . . . read and review pretty please^^_

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**Chapter One–**

**Lost**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"Ngh," a female voice groaned in the cool night air. "What . . . happened? Where . . . . Where am I?" the gentle chirping of crickets accompanied the groggy mumblings of the teenage girl. Dark-brown eyes scanned the tall trees all around her, puzzlement filling their depths; midnight-black hair shone blue as the moon showered it with an iridescent light. The girl's thigh-length tresses swung forward as she tried to stand on unstable legs. She managed a few steps before collapsing against the thick trunk of a tree.

"It feels as if I've . . . ngh" she cradled her pounding head in her fists, clenching her teeth against the unwanted pain. "My mind . . . my memory. Wh-who am I?" The young girl slumped against the twisted tree trunk, wrapping thin arms around jean-clad legs. Her throat ached and felt terribly raw for a reason unknown to her. The insistent growl of her stomach she ignored as best she could as she struggled to keep warm. She trembled reflexively as a night breeze penetrated the thin worn fabric of her black T-shirt. Her malnourished body went limp unexpectedly as the girl slipped back into a deep nothingness. A final shiver ran over her pale skin before she fell on her side, black hair scattering across the upraised roots of her tree.

Dry twigs snapped easily beneath a pair of feet as a stranger approached her fallen form. Moonlight gilded silver hair as it cascaded down the lean back of a strangely-attired man. A long red outfit covering his slim form gave him a remarkably feminine appearance. Amber eyes widened in shock at the disconcerting sight before him. Delicate white fingers brushed the fragile jawbone of the unconscious girl as they moved to detect the feeble pulse at her neck. A seriousness entered the pair of golden eyes, and the man gathered the girl carefully in his arms. Dismay dimly registered in his mind as he felt how thin she was beneath the baggy T-shirt. He took off as fast as he could in the direction he had been heading previously.

* * *

"Shigure! Call Hatori! Get him here NOW!" Kyo's hot-tempered voice crashed through the house, causing a certain novelist to peek his head out of his room curiously.

"What's wrong, Kyo?" Shigure asked as he followed the echoes of the boy's yells. Halting at the doorway to the main room, his jaw almost dropped open at the sight of Ayame, Kyo, and Yuki surrounding a futon in the middle of the room while Tohru remained occupied with frantically rushing to and fro between the kitchen and her unexpected patient. Without hesitation, Shigure Sohma hastened to the hallway and plucked the phone from its hook. Dialing the number of the Sohma family doctor quickly, he waited for Hatori to pick up. He didn't have to wait for long.

"Hatori Sohma speaking," a deep, professional voice answered. Shigure would have

smiled at the serious tone his friend always used if the situation had not been so dire. Instead the writer too spoke with a grave tone.

"Hatori-san, we have a problem here . . . ." the man's eyes moved back to the living room where his house mates sought to care for his new guest as best they could.

* * *

"She should be fine now," Hatori's calm voice soothed the frayed nerves of those around him. "The illness was brought on by exhaustion and malnutrition. When she wakes up, make sure that she eats." Tohru Honda nodded her head determinedly at him. Hatori gave her a small smile as he snapped his medical kit close. His amusement vanished quickly as Momiji pointed something unpleasant out.

"Why does she have all those bruises, Hatori?" the boy's voice held a hint of puzzlement as well as a streak of innocence. "Is she just clumsy?" Big brown eyes turned to Hatori in question, golden locks framing and enhancing the childish appearance of Momiji Sohma. Meanwhile, Yuki's sad violet eyes would not leave the face of the sleeping girl. Hatori paused to take note of the teenager's sympathy before answering Momiji.

"No, Momiji. She's not clumsy." Not even Hatori was blunt enough to blurt out the obvious truth in front of innocent children such as Momiji and Tohru. The young girl had undoubtedly been the victim of prolonged abuse . . . .


	2. Waking to the Sound of Fighting

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Fruits Basket_; it belongs to Natsuki Takaya, but any character(s) not associated with _Fruits Basket _is(are) mine._

_Crimson: I might have forgotten to mention this, but the "new girl" is around Tohru's age, which, I believe, is 15._

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** Chapter Two–**

**Waking to the Sound of Fighting**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

The sun barely had a chance to rise before Shigure's household broke out in its usual morning routine–Yuki and Kyo arguing with one another. Always in a bad mood in the early morning, Yuki Sohma made cold remarks about the cat's loud and annoying voice. And Kyo Sohma, always in a bad mood period, retorted back with a fiery temper and the urge to fight. Meanwhile, Tohru attempted to stop their bickering although she had no idea how to. Ayame and Momiji, both of whom had stayed the night, watched the show with interest from their places at the table. Shigure, used to this sort of spectacle, sat idly by while eating his breakfast. Occasionally, he would have to interrupt the escalating fight and quiet the boys down with his petulant whining. He did this in consideration for their guest who still slept in Tohru's bed upstairs.

While this mayhem occurred downstairs, silence consumed the second floor–minus the muffled dispute from below of course. It was an uncomfortable silence; air taut with violent emotions that spilled forth from a cracked door down the hall. A pair of weak hands clutched the sturdy wood of the door's frame. A confused face, followed soon after by a quavering body, appeared in the doorway. Various emotions passed over the girl's features, but the main one was annoyance. She may not know where she had woken up at, but she did know that she had been rudely awakened from a dreamless sleep. She had wanted to stay there forever, in that blissful darkness that hid her from everything.

The girl rubbed her gritty eyes with one hand while the other hung on to the door frame to keep her balance. A harsh rumbling from her stomach made her cringe and bring her hand down from her eyes to clutch at her aching abdomen. She was in sore need of food. The young woman began her remarkably slow venture down the hallway, leaning heavily against the wall for much-needed support as she went. Dark-brown eyes peeked through open doors cautiously, searching for occupants as well as the kitchen. It wasn't until she spotted the staircase that she realized that she was on a different level than the kitchen would be. She bit back a groan as she looked down the stairs with forlorn eyes. Her limbs were shaking even harder now with the lack of food.

With a determined huff the girl started down the staircase silently, stopping when she heard voices not far away. One of the voices escalated to yelling at which point she began to back up on the staircase. She didn't know why, but she hated that, or any, yelling. Her legs suddenly gave out from beneath her, forcing her to remain on the steps. Her heart leapt to her throat as the door to the room where the yelling had originated slid open. She had no choice but to remain where she had fallen as a boy came stomping into the hallway. His silver hair caught her eye first, then she noticed his violet eyes next as they landed on her. The annoyed look he had come upon her with faded, making way for kindness instead. Yet even with the gentle look he gave her, the girl on the staircase felt like she was a doe in the headlights. She couldn't move her frail body even as the boy climbed the stairs to her side.

He ended up sitting down next to her–bowing slightly before taking his seat–and introducing himself. "My name is Yuki Sohma. Pleased to meet you, Miss . . . ?" he waited for her name, but she had no name to give. Her eyes must have betrayed her confusion because he only smiled and continued on with the one-sided conversation. "How are you feeling this morning?"

The girl managed to find her voice, forcing herself to answer even if she had no desire to do so. He had helped her after all, hadn't he? It was only fair. "I'm okay now," she gave him a small smile. Her stomach growled again in protest of the lie. She frowned at it. Yuki just chuckled at the performance.

"Come and eat. You must be hungry." He held out his hand to her as he stood up. She hesitated for a moment before taking it cautiously. He helped her up, seeing that she barely had the strength to stand. The walk to the table where the food had been laid out was a difficult one and it tired the girl out. She was too hungry to even care that there were other people sitting around the traditional Japanese table. Yuki made the introductions as she started to eat, indicating each person with a slight wave of his hand. When he got to Kyo he just nodded his head in the orange-headed boy's direction, succeeding in pissing him off to no end. Yuki's older brother, Ayame Sohma kind of freaked her out when he got far too close for comfort in order to greet her.

"I hope my dear little brother did not frighten you with his brutish ways. Please forgive him. He just doesn't know how to treat the fairer sex. I've offered to teach him the correct way to treat a lady, but he refuses to accept my generosity. Don't you think he should show some respect to his elder brother?" Ayame leaned over the new girl until she was practically lying on the floor.

"Um. Not if you're like this to all your guests," she said quickly, without thinking. She had no desire to be manipulated by this man so she had said the first thing that had popped into her head. She sweat-dropped as the remarkably-feminine man refused to move. He had stopped to think, but he still hung over her. A couple seconds later and Ayame lay flat on his back on the other side of her. The girl looked up to see Yuki standing over her with a heated glare at his brother.

"I'm sorry about my brother," Yuki apologized as he knelt down to help the girl back into a sitting position. "He just gets carried away."

She was about to say that it was all right and no harm done when something unexpected happened: a force barreled into her side. Not enough to topple her to the ground again thank goodness, but enough that the pair of chopsticks in her hand clattered onto her plate.

"Momiji, you little brat!" Kyo yelled at the blond-haired boy that had wrapped his arms around the girl. Tension built up in the room as suddenly . . . absolutely nothing happened. Shigure then spoke up.

"Um . . . Kyo, Yuki, Ayame? Would you three mind helping me in the kitchen, please?" The four men got up and headed into the kitchen, earning curious looks from the two girls. Momiji got excited and wouldn't stop hugging his new friend. Tohru looked on with a happy grin on her face, but her blue-green eyes held a slightly perplexed look to them. All the while the mysterious new girl kept her eyes focused in the direction of the kitchen, curious and frightened as to why they would suddenly get up and leave.

**.::MEANWHILE IN THE KITCHEN::.**

"Why the hell didn't Momiji transform?" Kyo asked, his orange eyes serious. He had his arms crossed as he leaned against the counter. Yuki stood nearby him with a thoughtful look on his face.

"I honestly don't know," Shigure answered matter-of-factly. "I wonder if it was just a fluke. I guess one of us will have to hug her to find out." He had a perverted grin on his face as he said this. Yuki and Kyo just glared at him. "What?"

"Allow me to do the honors, Shigure! After all, a true gentleman must sacrifice himself for the good of all," Ayame volunteered with a dramatic wave of his hands. Seconds later, both Ayame and Shigure were nursing the lumps forming on their heads.

"So what do we do now?" Kyo asked while rubbing his knuckles as the tic on his temple slowly faded.

"Stupid cat," Yuki snapped, "we don't have much of a choice. She has to get her strength back whether or not she can hug us." He then walked out of the kitchen and headed back to his seat by the girl. Kyo followed soon after, muttering "damn rat" under his breath.

"Hmmm," Shigure held his chin in his hands.

"What are you plotting this time, Gure-san?" Ayame asked, golden eyes closed.

"You know I"ll have to tell Akito, Aya," the man said. His dark tone held a slight indication of defeat.

"He might force the poor girl out on the streets and then where will she go?" Ayame asked, eyelids opened halfway. His expression was one of sadness and sympathy.

"Which is why I won't tell him until it is absolutely necessary. Since she doesn't know about the curse . . ." he let his sentence hang.

". . .there's no need to tell him," Ayame finished for him. "Well then let's go and make this girl feel at home!" he added brightly, skipping off to the other room. Shigure smirked at his friend's behavior before following.

* * *

Yuki, Kyo, Momijji, and Tohru were getting ready to head out the door for school. Ayame and Shigure were in another part of the house (they had disappeared soon after breakfast and no one really cared to know where). Their new guest had stuck by Yuki's side all morning, never wanting to get too far away. Yuki didn't seem to mind and Tohru seemed to hardly notice the behavior, but Kyo was getting pretty irritated about the whole thing. Yuki refused to even argue with the "stupid cat" as long as the girl stayed near him. He'd basically just say "shut up" or "go away" and that was all; the rest of the time he'd ignore the demands for a fight.

"Uh . . . Yuki-kun?" the girl asked a bit nervously. Yuki looked up from putting on his shoes.

"Yes?" He would have addressed her a bit more formally, but they still didn't know her name. She had revealed to them earlier that she could not remember it. Of course Kyo had gotten into a big fit about that. Now that the hot-tempered boy was gone, she wanted to proceed with her question.

"Um. I know this might sound strange, but could you . . . could you . . . give me a name?" She looked down at her feet as soon as she had said this, embarrassed about the request. After a few moments of complete silence, she couldn't take it anymore. "Oh. Forget that I said anything, 'kay? Sorr–" She was cut off by someone's finger on her lips. She looked up to see Yuki standing over her. His gentle smiled calmed her down.

"Of course I will," he said with a smile. He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Hmm. How about 'Tenshi'?" His smile grew at her surprised look.

"'Angel'?" she asked, cheeks warming at the praise. At his nod, she hugged him in thanks. His expression turned to one of surprise, but the girl didn't see it. Yuki slowly returned the hug shortly before saying that he had to get going. Tenshi stood at the doorway as her four new friends (well, maybe Kyo was more of an "acquaintance") walked down the wooded path to school. She waved with as much energy as she could (which wasn't much) before heading back into the house.

Tenshi wandered into the living room and looked around her blankly. She sighed and hugged herself tightly. She felt lonely already; she missed having Yuki-kun around. (A/N: Yeah, I know they just met this morning and all, but remember the first human she met was Yuki since she lost her memories so she got attached to him. Kinda like when a newborn duckling thinks of the first creature it sees as its mother . . . although not exactly like that XD).

"Oooh, Tenshiiii!" a merry voice called from behind her. Tenshi jumped at how close the speaker sounded, momentarily forgetting that Ayame and Shigure still occupied the house. The girl didn't even have the chance to turn around, much less run for it, as she felt herself pulled into an embrace from behind. She looked up, craning her head to catch a glimpse of her captor. Silver hair framed on ivory face and golden eyes bore into her brown ones.

"Sohma-san?" She looked nervously up at him in question. Shigure stood behind the pair, smiling as if pleased with himself. Ayame pretended to look appalled at the use of his name.

"Oh no! You must call me 'Aya-san'! Alright, Tenshi-chan?" He brought her face close to his and Tenshi felt her cheeks burning at the close proximity. "Come on, say my name now." His gold eyes stared deeply into hers as if preparing to hypnotize her.

"Ayame, leave the girl alone," a deep voice ordered from the hallway. Immediately, Tenshi found herself freed from Aya-san's embrace. Another man entered the room with an unlit cigarette in the corner of his mouth. The girl kept cautious eyes on him as he approached her, shaking a bit out of what she could only guess to be a forgotten fear. Hatori Sohma noticed her quivering and halted a few steps away from her, bowing and introducing himself.

"Excuse my rudeness. I am Hatori Sohma; a doctor at the main estate of the Sohma family." Tenshi's shivering appeared to stop as a foggy memory came back to her. Her eyebrows lifted slightly in surprise.

"Are you the doctor who treated me when I was ill?" she asked him, surprising the three Sohmas standing in the living room. They had thought her unconscious until this morning; apparently she hadn't been completely dead to the world. Ayame mentally frowned as he thought of his bravery in rescuing the girl from the cruel night and yet she did not seem to remember him at all.

"Yes. That was me," Hatori answered, moving closer to her to rest one hand on her forehead while the other moved to his own. His eyes narrowed in concentration as he determined her temperature. "It seems that your fever has broken, but I would still recommend plenty of fluids and bed rest for a couple more days." He watched the girl's expressionless face for any sign of rebuke but found none. "However, you'll be needing dry clothes to change into and possibly a few other necessities. No doubt Tohru would be more than glad to let you borrow hers, but she is a bit larger than you at the moment." Ayame and Shigure looked at their friend in confusion, trying to understand what he was getting at. Tenshi just stood in front of him, waiting patiently for the doctor to finish his thoughts.

Hatori sighed and took out his wallet, flipping through the several bills within it. "This should be more than enough," he muttered, slipping the billfold back into his pants pocket. He motioned for Tenshi to follow him out to his car. Aya and Shigure trailed along after them, climbing into the back seat while Tenshi sat up front with Hatori. Mischievous glints flashed in Shigure's and Ayame's eyes.

"I see what you're doing, Ha'ari!" Shigure shrieked in the backseat. Tenshi covered her ears. "You're going to go clothes shopping for Tenshi!" Aya's eyes lit up even brighter as he tried to direct Hatori to his shop. Of course Hatori ignored him and drove straight to the not-so-flamboyant stores.

Tenshi merely sat in her seat silently, nervously fumbling with her hands and trying to talk herself out of leaping from the car to run for it. After all, these people _had_ helped her and the very _least_ she could do was stay with them. Her troubled eyes strayed from her lap to glance at the three men in the car. Ayame and Shigure both had wide grins on their faces while Hatori showed no emotion at all, but Tenshi suspected that even the man of ice was enjoying himself at least a little bit. The girl's gaze pulled away from them to look out her window dejectedly. She wished she could be more like them–carefree and happy–but, alas, she was not. For some reason fear was her constant companion, and Tenshi herself remained hopelessly reclusive.

Unbidden tears pricked at her eyes, but she forced them back angrily. Flinging these miserable feelings from her desperately, Tenshi brought herself back to the present situation.

Her eyes widened at all the people they were passing as she actually _looked_ out the window this time. Hatori had slowed down considerably as they entered the busy downtown area of Tokyo (A/N: I'm not sure if they live in Tokyo or not so in my story they do^^ Deal with it XP). Store upon store could be seen as they continued down the street. Tenshi couldn't believe her eyes. She definitely wasn't used to _this_.

Hatori finally found a suitable parking spot and turned off the engine. Everyone but Tenshi got out of the car. The girl was reluctant to enter the throng of people. She eyed them through the glass distrustfully, stomach churning at the mere thought of walking within arm's reach of them. Her car door swung open suddenly, frightening Tenshi for a second before she recognized Hatori's face looking in at her worriedly.

Worriedly? No. She must have been dreaming. Tenshi studied the doctor's face more closely and saw that whatever "worry" that had been there a second ago was wiped clean now.

Hatori bent down slightly and held out a hand to her like a gentleman would. "Are you feeling alright, Tenshi-san?" There it was again. That note of concern in his tone.

Tenshi didn't move for a few seconds, but then hesitantly took his hand. Her heart leapt to her throat when a scream came from somewhere in the vicinity as Hatori helped her onto the concrete sidewalk. The shrill voice froze her insides and time seemed to stop for Tenshi as everyone else went on gaily . . . .


	3. A Day Out

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Fruits Basket_. Tenshi, however, is my character. _

_Crimson: Hello, everybody! I suppose that you're all ready to murder me after the cliff- hanger in the last chapter . . . heh **sweatdrops**_

_Tenshi: I wouldn't blame them on that. **glares at author** You left _me_ hanging . . . ._

_Crimson: I said I was sorry, didn't I? Anyway, I just want to apologize to my readers (thank you so much for reading this story. I hope you enjoy it) since I haven't updated in such long time. I was kept pretty busy for awhile there. Sorry about that._

_Tenshi: Just get on with the story, please? _

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**Chapter Three–**

**A Day Out**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

**.::RECAP::.**

_Hatori bent down slightly and held out a hand to her like a gentleman would. "Are you feeling alright, Tenshi-san?" There it was again. That note of concern in his tone._

_Tenshi didn't move for a few seconds, but then hesitantly took his hand. Her heart leapt to her throat when a scream came from somewhere in the vicinity as Hatori helped her onto the concrete sidewalk. The shrill voice froze her insides and time seemed to stop for Tenshi as everyone else went on gaily . . . ._

**.::END RECAP::.**

With her heart pounding in her chest, Tenshi leapt from her position in the car seat and straight into a surprised Hatori's arms. It was the only place she could go. The only safe place available. Her entire body shook fiercely as the screams vibrated in her head.

"Tenshi-san? Calm down. It's alright," the doctor reassured the trembling girl although he had little idea why she was suddenly so terrified. It was then that he caught sight of the wailing baby a few yards away, it's mother trying unsuccessfully to calm her child down. "You don't like screaming, do you?" he concluded more to himself than to Tenshi. Before the girl could even nod, she was assaulted by more screaming. Or, at least, it resembled screaming, but the voices shrieking on either side of her were familiar and filled with concern.

"Oh! Tenshi-chan! Are you alright?" Ayame inquired in his lilting yet deep voice, snow-white hair falling over his shoulders as he leaned over to be at eye-level with the young girl. Although his character was out again–being as charismatic and charming as ever–Tenshi could see the glimmer of worry in his golden eyes. "I know the city life is quite a bit to take in, at first, but you'll get used to it! The sights, sounds, and smells of it all just knocks you right off your feet! But not to worry! You'll soon find that it's quite intoxicating!" the man continued on and on with great flashy waves of his hands. Tenshi stared at him, amazed. How could _this_ possibly be related to Yuki-kun . . . .?

"Feeling better, Tenshi-chan?" Shigure asked her from her other side. Tenshi turned her head to glance at the brown-haired man and nodded. The babe and his mother had ventured far enough away that the screaming could no longer be heard. At least, not over Ayame's loud speech about the novelties of city life . . . .

It was then that Tenshi realized Ayame's true objective. Maybe he was more like his younger brother than she had first thought . . . .

"Well then, let's get going, shall we?" Shigure continued, winking at his new housemate. He and Ayame began to skip down the sidewalk, moving in the opposite direction that the wailing child had gone.

Hatori sighed at his friends' antics but a small smile still made its way onto his stoic face. "Stay close, alright, Tenshi?" the brunette ordered, gently prying the girl's delicate fingers out of his jacket's folds. He didn't protest when she replaced her hold on him albeit in a more relaxed way and clung to his side like a timid child as the pair followed the childish adults.

* * *

"Hatori! Shigure! Ayame! Hey there!" a young boy's voice suddenly rang throughout the diner. Fortunately, Hatori had requested a table outside so the shouting didn't really bother the other customers. . .much.

"Oh, well, if it isn't Momiji!" Shigure recognized the short blonde bouncing his way towards them. Hatsuharu wasn't far behind (of course, _he _wasn't bouncing like a hyperactive bunny). Both were still wearing their high school uniforms. Of course, Momiji was in his . . . .

"Oh my! That girl's uniform looks _sooo_ good on you, dear Momiji!" Ayame gushed as he saw the cute boy. Ayame had never seen any of the kids (other than Yuki, Kyo, and Tohru) in their school uniforms. It didn't seem to bother him that Momiji was wearing clothing usually reserved to the female gender, but, then again, he may have been used to such oddities. Momiji wasn't the only cross-dresser in the Sohma family, after all.

"What are you doing outside of school, Momiji?" Hatori inquired automatically. Both boys glanced at each other before turning back to stare at the three adults.

"Well, Hatori-san . . ." Momiji started bashfully, rubbing the back of his head out of habit. Fortunately for him, Hatsuharu intervened.

"School ended about thirty minutes ago," Haru informed the small group. His expressionless face didn't change even at the shocked features of his elders.

Hatori glanced down at his watch, eyes widening slightly at the time. "Hn. It certainly has. Must have lost track of the time." Usually, the doctor would glance at his watch every now and then, but he wore his watch on his right wrist and Tenshi had taken to clinging to that particular arm all day . . . . With his thoughts suddenly centered around the young girl, Hatori's warm gaze instantly settled on her. She was still by his side, but had finally given him some room to move. Not that he had minded her tenacious grip on him. He was secretly proud of the fact that the girl could find such comfort in him. It made him feel protective of her, somehow. Like a father with his daughter.

Throughout the day they had spent shopping for the girl (Hatori, Ayame, _and_ Shigure had all gotten her more than enough clothes and plenty of extra "necessities" as Ayame called them), Tenshi seemed to have relaxed while walking with the trio. But, it seemed, she only liked the three of _them_. Whether it was because she knew them to be Yuki's relatives or not, Tenshi would cringe away from any passerby who would coo over her "cute" appearance. No one seemed to believe that she was actually fifteen and not a ten-year-old. Of course, the baggy clothes Tohru had lent her that morning didn't help persuade them. Still, Tenshi had stuck by Hatori's side the entire time. Which wasn't too surprising, considering he was the only sane one in the group.

"Oh, hello," Momiji greeted the girl with an awed smile after finally spotting her. She was hiding from the two newcomers behind Ayame's lithe form, not actually touching him but still managing to keep out of sight. "Remember me? I'm Momiji," the schoolboy continued with an encouraging grin. His golden eyes looked puzzled for a minute as silence met his declaration. "Um, well, this is Hatsuharu Sohma or 'Haru', as he likes to be called. He's a cousin of Yuki and Kyo, too." That last tidbit earned him a response. His honey-colored eyes glittered as he watched her blue-black hair fall perfectly around a pale, heart-shaped face as the girl (A/N: remember, only Yuki and the Mabudachi Trio know her name) moved out of hiding.

"Y-yes, I remember. Momiji-kun," Tenshi mumbled shyly. By nature, she was shy, but being out in public made it ten times worse. "Nice to meet you, Hatsuharu-kun." She gave the black-and-white-haired teenage boy at Momiji's shoulder a shaky smile. A light-pink blush stained her cheeks when he returned it with a small, warm one of his own. She had a feeling that didn't happen often. . . .

"Ah, yes!" Shigure began suddenly. "You don't even know she has a name now, do you, Momiji?" he asked the blonde boy with a grin. He got the desired response when Momiji began to jump up and down in excitement.

"Oh! Tell me! Tell me!" the young teen demanded. Even Tenshi had a hard time suppressing a smile at that. But seeing as how the topic was about _her_, she ducked her head just in time to hide it behind a curtain of long, silky hair.

"It's 'Tenshi'," Hatori stated simply, knowing that Shigure could (and would) drag this on forever. He ignored his friend's whining at "interrupting his game". "Yuki gave her the name, apparently," he informed the two boys, repeating what Ayame had told him.

"Yuki did?" Haru asked with a questioning raise of his eyebrows.

"Tenshi?! Oh, that's a _great_ name!" Momiji exclaimed with a huge grin plastered on his child-like face. "And she's so pretty, too. It really suits her," he continued, oblivious to the stares he was receiving from passerby and customers at other tables.

Hatori sighed. "Have you two eaten yet?" At their shaking heads, he motioned for them to both sit down. While Hatori started to list off the food and drinks they all wanted to the waitress that had finally showed up, Momiji somehow managed to wedge himself between Ayame and Tenshi. That was when he caught sight of what she was hiding in her lap.

"Are you an artist, Tenshi-chan?" the blonde asked, already substituting the formal "-san" with a more affectionate endearment. Tenshi didn't seem to notice that little detail however and simply nodded in answer to his question. "You're _really_ good," he continued, honey-colored eyes glued to the pencil drawing she had been working on. "Aw! It's such a cute little puppy!"

"It's a wolf cub, isn't it?" Haru asked from his position on the other side of Ayame. His stone-grey eyes, too, were focused on the fuzzy wolf as it played in the snow. The detail was absolutely stunning. It looked like the creature would leap straight off the paper at any moment.

"Y-yes. It is," Tenshi verified with a stutter. She restrained herself from covering up her new sketchpad as embarrassment colored her cheeks a bright red. "Wolves are my favorite animal," she admitted sheepishly, trying (as Hatori had encouraged earlier) to make friends. It was odd, this no memory thing. She knew what it was she liked, such as her favorite animal, food, and color; but she didn't know any actual information, such as her name, birthday, and even family (if she had any). Maybe it was because the things she liked were connected with her feelings and emotions, while the rest of the information locked away within the recesses of her mind were simply logic. Maybe . . . .

"Really? You don't like rabbits or cows?" Momiji asked somewhat dejectedly. Tenshi felt a flutter in her chest at his saddened expression. She was confused as to why he had asked about those things specifically (and even more confused as to why everyone at the table suddenly stiffened), but answered truthfully nonetheless.

"Uh. No, that's not it," Tenshi spoke softly. "I love all animals, but wolves just seem to stand out more to me, for some reason." _'Like I have some sort of connection with them,'_ she explained, leaving the last part to be said only in her own head. She didn't really feel like confessing that part to them. It was too weird, even for her. She didn't know why she felt that way about wolves, but feel it she did. There was nothing that could change her heart on that . . . .

"Oh," Momiji mused to himself, looking thoughtful for a moment. Suddenly, he grinned and started up a conversation with Tenshi about art and how he liked to hand-paint. Somehow, the childish teenager managed to keep talking the entire time it took for their food to be ready and served to them. He even squeezed out a few responses from the ever-timid Tenshi whom everyone was fast growing fond of.

"That's enough, Momiji," Hatori cut in as the blond was halfway through explaining his class schedule at the high school. Both Tenshi and Momiji pouted. Momiji liked describing the stuff that Tenshi didn't quite understand due to her memory loss while Tenshi had been enjoying the description of the school which she couldn't recall ever attending. The doctor sweat-dropped at the twin puppy-dog eyes he was getting. "Tenshi-chan needs to eat. She's still too far underweight."

"Oh," Momiji sighed, realization dawning in his honey-colored eyes. He turned to look at Tenshi who wasn't even a head taller than him. "We'll eat now and then talk later!" he said excitedly as if having just concocted a brilliant plan. Tenshi giggled for the first time since she had been with them and nodded, taking up the pair of chopsticks in front of her.

"Yes, we mustn't let this food go to waste," Shigure pointed out, also picking up his eating utensils. "Although Tohru's home-cooked meals taste much better. . . ." he added in an undertone. At the sudden feeling of burning holes in his shoulder blades, the novelist looked behind him. He jumped at the heated glare their waitress threw his way, laughing nervously.

"Idiot," Hatori muttered beneath his breath as he calmly drank his tea.

"Ah! Momiji's conversation earlier reminded me," Ayame suddenly began, pausing in the middle of his meal of steamed rice and yakitori. He turned to Hatori with a serious expression on his face. "Ha'ari? Will Tenshi-chan be attending school while she's with us?" Everyone looked up at that. The atmosphere at the table grew very tense. Even though Ayame may not have intended it, there was more than one question in his seemingly-harmless inquiry . . . .

"I'm not even sure if she will be staying with us," Hatori spoke softly, glancing out of the corner of his good eye at the subject of their conversation. Tenshi glanced questionably at him, cocking her head in curiosity.

"Well, Ha'ari," Shigure spoke up, deciding to intervene, "you said so yourself that she had been victim of, uh. . ." he trailed of, glancing nervously around at the three clueless children. "Um, victim of _circumstance_," he finished awkwardly. While the kids were confused at what he meant, the adults nodded in grim understanding. "It's not like she can go back to her old life. Even if we _knew_ where that was."

"I must agree with Shigure on this," Ayame interjected swiftly, probably fearing that Hatori would shoot down the idea of her staying with them. "After all, I'm sure Tohru would be delighted to have another girl in the house!" His expression went from somber to enthusiastic in an instant as he said this.

Hatori sighed in defeat, knowing that he wouldn't be able to take the girl away from the two overprotective men. With a glance at his shoulder, he realized that he, too, wouldn't push her back into a life she neither remembered nor desired. Of course, if she was to live in Shigure's household permanently (there was no alternative. It was obvious she was attached to Yuki), then Akito would need to be informed. He held back the shiver of fear that wanted to run down his spine at the thought of telling their family head about the frail teenage girl they had taken in. If Akito decided to erase her memories of them (which would leave her with no memory at all) and shove her out onto the street, then they would be unable to go against his command.

He jumped slightly as Tenshi giggled softly at something Momiji had said. Turning to watch the two teenagers, Hatori noticed Haru smiling as well as the black-and-white-haired boy stared at the newest girl to fall into their once-miserable lives. Both Shigure and Ayame had their eyes focused on her as well, brotherly affection softening their gazes. Hatori felt the same emotion they felt as he, too, watched Tenshi's innocent, dark-brown eyes glitter with a fresh life. Whatever had happened to her in the past had been forgotten. What mattered to her now was the present. No shadows and no darkness haunted her appearance like it did with many of the Sohmas. Maybe that was why they were all so drawn to her. Maybe her innocence and vulnerability was what they felt they needed to protect. Well, whatever it was, Hatori made his decision right then and there.

Akito didn't have to know about this girl, yet. For now, she had a home. And it was with them.


End file.
